Father, son building mower shop business together

Sunday

Want to stop by and just ask Lance Conner a few questions about your lawn mower? He's OK with that.

Just looking for a new blade? Sure thing.

Oh, you want a whole setup for your new lawn care business? Conner is ready for that, too.

Conner is the new owner of the St. Augustine Power House lawn equipment shop on Pope Road, and his goal is to be the go-to guy for every type of customer.

After three decades of working in the heavy equipment business in Jacksonville, Conner is working with smaller-scale machinery but bigger dreams.

Living about a mile away from the shop for years, Conner had the idea of running it for a long time. He eventually got a job as manager before buying the business in June.

"I really wanted to do it 10 or 15 years ago," Conner said. "I could see we needed another mower shop (in town)."

Now that Conner is the owner, he has been able to turn the shop into a family business while still keeping some of the veteran repair technicians.

Son Matt Conner has years of experience in the construction business and was thrilled at the chance to work with his father. And he was happy to see his dad finally fulfill his dream of owning his own business.

"When my dad heard this was going to be coming for sale, we kicked it around," Matt said. "I said, 'Dad, we've got to take advantage of this. It's right up our alley.' It's been great."

Working directly with family can be a blessing or a curse, depending on how well everyone gets along and complements each other.

Matt said he's always had a good relationship with his father, but working right next to him was an experiment.

"You don't really know until you start working 5 feet from your dad all day long," Matt said. "To me, it's been a great thing."

The biggest reasons for the harmony are that father and son share the same passion for the success of the business and that they both approach customer service the same way.

"We want the people to be comfortable in calling us," Matt said. "What we've found in the short time we've owned it is people really appreciate it if you just take some time to give them some answers, not just treat them as a number."

Both Lance and Matt said they are happy to take a few minutes to explain how equipment works rather than just ushering customers out the door following a sale. And if people come in with a problem, the Conners said they're willing to show someone how to prevent maintenance issues in the future.

It's that service that allows them to compete with the big box retailers. Because of the volume of sales, the Conners won't be able to beat the prices of the large stores, but they hope to make it a better experience.

"We don't let any of our equipment leave (the store) in a box," Matt said. "We make sure it has fuel in it, that it has the proper amount of oil, that it starts up. I think people really appreciate it."

And when things do break, the Conners want customers to feel comfortable bringing equipment to them - regardless of where it was purchased. They keep a huge selection of mower blades because they want to be prepared to service the most basic needs quickly.

Lance said one of the reasons he was eager to buy the business is because he had guys in the repair shop he could trust. In fact, sometimes customers come in just to talk to one of the mechanics (Mike "Bean" Taylor, Aaron Land and Josh Gardner).

"Those guys really are what make the business," Lance said. "It's great being able to work with the crew we have."

Whether it's a person with a push mower and a trimmer or a business owner with a trailer full of machines, the Conners want them all to feel respected.

Of course, that can't be done with marketing. The Conners are trying to win over customers one at a time.

"The only way you can get word of mouth is to do a good job right off the bat," Lance said.

They're fine with that strategy because the Conners want to turn The Power House into a family-operated institution.

"We're going to continue to be here and be involved in it," Lance said.

Added Matt: "I'd like to see my son that I had nine months ago be involved (some day)."

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